Biden’s former ATF pick says White House set him up for failure

President Biden’s former pick to head the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives on Wednesday criticized the administration for his scuttled candidacy, saying it set him up to fail.

In his first public comments since Mr. Biden scuttled his nomination amid weak support from lawmakers, David Chipman said he felt alone and on “an island” when he was criticized by gun-rights groups.

“Either this was impossible to win or the strategy failed,” Mr. Chipman told The New York Times. “This was a failure.”

Mr. Chipman said instead of pushing back against gun groups intent on sinking his nomination, the administration focused its attention on selling him to Democrat centrists like Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia.

While the administration peddled Mr. Chipman to Mr. Manchin, it lost the support of Sen. Angus King, Maine independent, leaving Democrats shy of the 50 votes needed for confirmation.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki blamed Republicans for sinking Mr. Chipman’s nomination and said she shared his frustration.

“We were clear-eyed about nominating anyone, even anyone as qualified as him,” she said. “There has only been one confirmed ATF director in history because of Republican obstructionism.”

“The president engaged members of the Senate about his nomination and we were committed to getting it through,” she continued. “Unfortunately we didn’t have the votes.”

Ms. Psaki said talks are underway with Mr. Chipman about finding a role for him within the administration.

Mr. Chipman also said that no one at the White House spoke with him from the moment he was nominated. He called the lack of contact unusual.

“In the back of my mind, I always thought that there would be a Plan B, but so far there hasn’t been,” Mr. Chipman told the paper.

He said he was speaking out now to encourage the Biden administration not to ignore the ATF, which has not had a permanent director in six years. Former President Trump’s nominee for the position was also nixed after a disastrous confirmation hearing. 

The president pulled the plug on Mr. Chipman’s nomination earlier this month after it had been stuck in limbo for months.

Lawmakers of both parties raised questions over his ties to the gun-control advocacy group Giffords, which was founded by former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who survived a mass shooting in 2011.

Mr. Chipman could have won confirmation if all the Senate Democrats had backed his nomination, but several of the chambers’ more moderate Democrats also raised questions about his positions.

Republican opposition to Mr. Chipman was fierce.

They were intensely critical of his work with Giffords, saying he advocated gun-control policies that were too extreme. They said it disqualified him to run the ATF, which is tasked with enforcing federal gun laws.